Changes to the Statutory Assessment and Resourcing Team (START)
START has reorganised as part of the children's change agenda at Cambridgeshire County Council. It's the first in a series of SEND changes across the Children, Families and Adults directorate which is moving to a "lifelong" 0-25 years SEND Service late next year. The Statutory Assessment and Resources Team (START) is splitting into two separate teams:
- assessment/review team
- a commissioning/specialist resource team
Specialist placements, SEND Commissioning, resources/EHCP finance, the county resourcing panel and SEND/LAC transport stays in Commissioning Enhanced Services and will be combined into a new SEND Resources Team. Head of Commissioning Enhanced Services is Judith Davies.
The contact details for START, which will continue to be managed by Michelle Docking, remain unchanged:
T: 01480 372600
E:
Early Help Assessment (EHA) has replaced the Family CAF Assessment
The Early Help Assessment (EHA):
- Provides a standardised and holistic assessment tool for professionals and volunteers to use with families to identify all of the needs within a family and how their various needs inter-relate.
- Operates as a request for services and as such supports decision making about how a family's needs might be best addressed.
Mental Health Matters.
A new website, designed to improve access to mental health support for young people, has launched across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough. , a free, confidential counselling service, provides mental health self-help information and support online for people aged between 11 and 19. Young people can chat to counsellors on the website until 10pm, 365days a year, and join in on forums with young people experiencing similar challenges.
DfE announces 2017-18 SEND Implementation Grant
Details of the 2017-18 SEND Implementation Grant (new burdens), including a letter from Edward Timpson, Minister for Vulnerable Children and Families, and individual local authority allocations, are attached.
Letter re SEND Implementation Grant
Letter re SEND implementation grant and wider funding
DfE also made an announcement recently regarding £23m funding to local authorities to carry out a strategic review of their high needs provision. Further information, including individual local authority allocations is available at:
Moving to Adult Social Care
New document that outlines in detail the process, responsibilities and timescales for young people who will be transferring from a children’s social work to an adult social work team. The link to the document is towards the bottom of the page with the Preparing for Adulthood protocol and labelled ‘agreed pathway’.
Link to webpage
NATIONAL NEWS
A Quick Guide for People Who Arrange Their Own Home Care:
National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) has released a quick guide aimed at people who arrange their own care either as self-funders or through a direct payment. It is very brief but does give some useful information. While mainly aimed at older people the information is relevant to anyone who does this.
Link to guide
Disabled Students Helpline
Disability Rights UK provide advice to disabled students who are studying in England. The phone line - 0800 328 5050 - is open from 11am-1pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and they can be emailed on Advisors can advise and support disabled people who are studying, or wish to study, at any level on full-time or part-time education or training courses in England and they are over 16. They can also advise parents and/or carers of disabled students or professionals working with disabled students.
SEND: The Schools and Colleges Experience
This report, from the Department for Education, presents research into how children with SEND and their parents feel about the process of dealing with schools and colleges.
NHS Choices: Parent Training May Benefit Children with Severe Autism
"A new form of therapy has for the first time been shown to improve the symptoms and behaviour of autistic children," The Guardian reported last month. This 'Behind the headlines' article examines the evidence behind this report.
Ofsted’s annual report and message for Cambridgeshire schools
Secondaries are improving, but 'stalled' primaries must do better- Ofsted gives its verdict on Cambridgeshire's schools
Leading my life my way
Scope’s new research paper Leading My Life My Way looks at young disabled people’s experiences of using support services to live independent lives. Findings show that young disabled people are experiencing poor quality care and support planning, a lack of information and advice tailored to their specific needs and expectations.
The Local Offer: Briefing
This CDC briefing sets out the special educational provision and special training provision local authorities expect to be made available by schools, early years and post-16 providers.
Resources for Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs)
The Department for Education published ehcpjourneys.com in April 2016, a website full of resources to support practitioners in delivering the Education, Health and Care (EHC) planning and assessment process. The resources were all developed from in-depth research into the experiences of young people, families and practitioners in 4 different local areas.
EHCP Resource
CDC have recently developed a resource to help practitioners write good quality EHC plans that meet both the letter and the spirit of the Children and Families Act 2014. The first part includes excerpts from real EHC plans, the second part has two EHC plans which draw on real examples (although the plans themselves relate to fictional children):
Early intervention for children with learning disabilities whose behaviour challenges
A final evaluation report on the Challenging Behaviour Foundation and CDC’s joint Early Intervention Project has just been published. The project aimed to create better outcomes and quality of life for children with disabilities whose behaviour challenges. The evaluation has found that early intervention is not only extremely valuable for families, but also has the potential to be a cost effective alternative
New parking scheme helps disabled people park with ease
A parking scheme which helps customers locate a car park which meets their specific requirements has been launched by disability rights campaigner Helen Dolphin MBE
MindEd for families
Is your child in crisis? Are you worried about them? Perhaps you just want some parenting tips. This new website site will help you understand and support your child. The website has been developed by parents and professionals in partnership. It is accredited by the NHS Information Standard.
Contact Family parent carer participation webinars online
Contact a Family have published their most recent parent carer participation webinars online, these can be found at the following links:
- 23/09/16 - Understanding and working with the health system Link to webinar
- 19/10/16 - Introduction to Parent Carer Participation Link to webinar
- 08/11/16 - CQC and Ofsted inspections Link to webinar
Local Area SEND Inspection Outcome Letters
As part of the SEND reforms Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission have been undertaking inspections of local area services for children and young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Outcome letters following these inspections can be found on the link below.
Autism and Christmas
Christmas can be an exciting and fun time, but people with autism may be confused or distressed by all the new activity. With the help of readers of Your Autism Magazine, the National Autistic Society have compiled a list of tips that may help you through the festive period.
Link to advice
Network Autism resources ‘Preparing for Christmas’
Autism and exams
One parent’s story of her sons exams problems and what was done to turn the situation around.
Women and Girls with Autism
Video interview with Charlene Tait, Director of Autism Practice and Research at Scottish Autism, discusses their innovative new online support programme for autistic women and girls, their families and professionals. She explores some of the difficulties that autistic women and girls may face, particularly around diagnosis.
Helping Dyslexics to shine
Diana Hudson, trainer and author, provides useful tips for teachers and parents.
SEND Tribunal Statistics
Extensive statistics covering the SEND tribunal have just been released (click on link below and scroll down) – includes data by type of appeal and LA area.
Academy Trusts: Notices about Poor Performance
The DfE have released a spreadsheet listing all academy trusts in receipt of pre-warning notice or warning notice letters. Copies of letters addressing poor or inadequate performance or weaknesses in safeguarding, governance or financial management are also available.
Link to spreadsheet
Link to letters
National Statistics: Permanent and fixed-period exclusions in England: 2014 to 2015
Data covering levels of permanent and fixed-period exclusions by school type, including information on reasons for exclusions and exclusion review panels. The primary need exclusions figures have been updated to include pupils with a statement of SEN, education, health and care plan, School Action Plus and SEN support.
People with Learning Disabilities in England 2015
National statistical information on the characteristics of people with learning disabilities, and the services and support they and their families access, is collected by several government departments. The aim of this report is to provide, within a single publication, a concise summary of this information.
Link to report
OTHER NEWS…
Health and social care
Adult Social Care underfunding affects health
The Government urgently needs to address the under-funding of adult social care to relieve pressure on A&E departments, says the Health Committee in its report on winter planning in A&E departments.
Social care funding report
The Local Government Association released their latest report on local social care funding for 2016. The report looks at the state of funding for adult social care and current pressures
Link to report
Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Sustainability & Transformation plan
This is a link to a leaflet that summarises Cambridgeshire and Peterborough’s Councils and NHS 5 year Sustainability and Transformation Plan which outlines how councils and NHS are going to work together.
The full document can be found here.
Choosing Wisely
Choosing Wisely is a new website which helps people ask relevant questions so they can make informed decisions about their health care.
Adult social care funding gap
In its new report, Adult social care funding: 2016 state of the nation the Local Government Association (LGA) estimates that local government faces an overall funding gap of £5.8 billion by 2019/20
New handbook for DMOs and DCOs
The Designated Medical Officer (DMO) or Designated Clinical Officer (DCO) plays a key part in implementing the SEND reforms and in supporting joined up working between health services and local authorities. In partnership with DMOs and DCOs, CDC have developed a handbook which sets out practical tips and learning with the aim of helping DMO and DCOs, commissioners and other professionals involved in the implementation of the health elements of the Children and Families Act.
VODG launches new social value toolkit
Voluntary Organisations Disability Group (VODG) has launched a practical resource that supports the delivery of social value in the commissioning of social care and promotes increased cooperation between social care commissioners and providers. The VODG Social Value Toolkit reflects an approach to commissioning which creates maximum value for money from public spending by realising additional benefits from providers – at no extra cost to the public purse.
Care and support fact sheets
Cambridgeshire County Council have a series of care and support fact sheets on their website - also available in easy read and large print.
Report on the Independent Living Survey 2016
This report, published by In Control on behalf of the Independent Living Strategy group, presents the findings of an online survey looking at what impact the Care Act is actually having on the day-to-day lives of disabled people living in England today.
Sustainability and transformation plans in the NHS, How are they being developed in practice?
The King's Fund new report into Sustainability and Transformation Plans was published on 14 November. It talks about how the plans are being developed in practice.
Financial sustainability of the NHS
The financial performance of NHS bodies worsened considerably in 2015-16 and this trend is not sustainable, according to the National Audit Office.
Early years and childcare
Findings of the 30 hours childcare consultation
The Department for Education has published the results of the consultation on its extension of early year’s childcare to 30 hours a week. It makes commitments on eligibility, flexibility, and SEND support, but commitments on funding the offer are awaited following the closure of the Early Years Funding consultation on 22nd September.
Link to results of consultation
Research challenges Government 30 hours policy in light of shortage of trained early years teachers
In a controversial report urging the Government to reconsider its funding priorities, the charity Save the Children warns that the education of younger children is being put at risk by a “chronic shortage” of trained early years teachers across nurseries in England.
The charity highlights the falling number of applicants for early years teaching roles, and calculates there is a shortage of 10,000 qualified nursery teachers up and down the country. As a result, more than 250,000 children are at greater risk of falling behind by the time they reach school.
Read the article on the Children and Young People Now website here:
£5.2m grant funding pot for charities to improve early years services and deliver free childcare
The Department for Education has announced £5.2m of grant funding to target four priorities, including supporting disadvantaged children and the doubling of free childcare. The Early Years VCS Grant Programme is intended to "help develop and further" its strategic aims to support early years priorities. One of the four funding criteria is listed as "implementation support" to deliver key policies. Under government plans, all three- and four-year-olds will be entitled to 30 hours of government-funded childcare each week from September 2017. The other three funding criteria are supporting disadvantaged children, early years special educational needs and disabilities, and workforce development.
Early years providers and SEN
Specialist SEN solicitor Douglas Silas answers key questions about SEN roles and responsibilities in the early years
New Funding for Early Years
The government has announced increased support for children with disabilities through the introduction of a Disability Access Fund, which will provide £615 per year for every eligible child.
Link to the governments full response
Schools and colleges
Moving On options booklet
Information on education, training, employment and moving from children to adult services for young people in Cambridgeshire with special educational needs and disabilities.
Ambitious About Autism launch 'When Will we Learn?'
Ambitious About Autism has launched a campaign to make the education system better for those with autism and their families. A new report, When Will We Learn? looks at the impact of the education system when it fails children and young people with autism and their families. Many families are struggling to get the right support for their children and young people who, as a result, are not receiving the education they are entitled to.
A whole school framework for emotional well-being and mental health
The National Children’s Bureau (NCB) has created a new toolkit for schools to help them face the issue of student mental health and wellbeing.
What children are telling us about bullying
NSPCC's Childline report collects children's views and experiences of bullying. In it we see anecdotal evidence and data on disablist bullying with a focus on those on the autism spectrum. The report aims to help schools and other organisations working with children think about how to ensure that young people have confidence that reporting bullying behaviour will make a difference.